Three Duke lacrosse players took five to 10 minutes to sexually assault a woman hired to perform as a stripper at a team party, and not the 30 minutes she originally described to investigators, a prosecutor said Friday. "When something happens to you that is really awful, it can seem like it takes place longer than it actually takes," District Attorney Mike Nifong said.

Nifong's comments came as Superior Court Judge W. Osmond Smith III denied a defense request that prosecutors provide a detailed accounting of the alleged assault, including the exact time, place and type of sexual act the accuser said each defendant committed.

A grand jury has indicted three lacrosse players _ Reade Seligmann, 20; Collin Finnerty, 19; and David Evans, 23 _ on charges of rape, kidnapping and sexual offense. The accuser, a student at nearby North Carolina Central University, told police she was raped in a bathroom by three men at a March 13 off-campus party. Defense attorneys have strongly proclaimed the players' innocence.

Kirk Osborn, who represents Seligmann, said the defense needed the "bill of particulars" because the accuser has told several different versions of the alleged assault, and his client has a right to know which version prosecutors will present at trial. In search and arrest warrants issued early in the investigation, police stated the accuser told investigators she was assaulted for 30 minutes.

Nifong said he is not required to state the exact time of the alleged attack, but offered that authorities believe it took place between 11:30 p.m. on March 13, when the accuser arrived at the party, and 12:55 a.m. on March 14, when police arrived and found no one at the house.

Friday's hearing was the first since Smith was appointed to take over the case, and it was scheduled to continue Friday afternoon.

Before the hearing began, Nifong gave defense lawyers 615 pages of evidence, a compact disc and a cassette tape. He said it included much of what was requested by defense lawyers, who had asked for handwritten notes from police officers involved with the case, reports outlining procedures used at the labs that tested the DNA of the players and notes from a mental health facility where police took the accuser after the party.

For quite some time, we have believed that the keys to understanding and exposing the Hoax would be found in the words of interim District Attorney Mike Nifong. Unlike many of the other less practiced actors in this absurd performance, he deceives with a verbal precision that has allowed him to hijack this Hoax for his own benefit. With this in mind we have compiled, catalogued, inspected, analyzed and mocked many of the public statements he has made throughout his persecution of the innocent Duke Three.

The crime would not be Crystal taking money and running. The crime would be people who paid her off. That's why I stated right way that Jakki's claim that somebody tried to pay Crystal off-was bogus. It would be a crime to pay her off. Nifong wouldn't go after her, he would go after whoever offered her the money. You can not make a criminal case go away by paying money.

In response to Nifong's latest bizarre smarta$$ remark in court to Mr. Osborn Out of his clients whole life, we have given him an hour and a half that he has to account for.

I felt it my civic obligation to provide a copy here for Nifong's perusal of a timeline I've cobbled together from various blogs, notes, posts, court documents, etc.. If he can find even 5 minutes available for RS to be alone with the AV then he truely is, in the Clinton category for spin...

Matt Dees, Staff Writer DURHAM - Police have launched an internal investigation into allegations that a 13-year-old boy was wrestled to the ground, handcuffed and pepper-sprayed Monday, though he had done nothing wrong.

Delquan Pilgrim was walking to a convenience store on Enterprise Street about 4:30 p.m. when officers stopped him, his father, Eppert Lowery, said the boy told him.

The officers pushed Delquan to the ground and used pepper spray on him, Lowery said his son recalled.

"They just said he looked suspicious," Lowery said. "Ninety-five percent of the people in the neighborhood look suspicious."

Delquan wasn't charged with any crime. The officers took him to Duke Hospital for treatment of cuts and other minor injuries, where he was left for several hours without his parents being contacted, Lowery said.

Lowery said he spent years as a juvenile corrections officer, and he said there are techniques for restraining youngsters.

Those techniques don't include choke holds and other rough treatment that the boy said he received, Lowery said.

Gary P. Lee, 38, and Scott C. Tanner, 33, were fired from the force recently for their alleged role in a fight outside a Raleigh sports bar. The black victim alleges the white off-duty officers used racial slurs against him, though a police investigation couldn't confirm that.

Whitley noted the officers who who allegedly assaulted Delquan are white. Delquan is black.

"If the officers were green, I'd feel the same way," Whitley said. "I ain't got a clue why the police officer chose to stop this one little child." Staff writer Matt Dees can be reached at 956-2433 or matt.dees@newsobserver.com.

Police turn to psychic for help

By BriAnne Dopart, The Herald-Sun September 27, 2006 10:54 pm

DURHAM -- After exhausting all leads in the murder case of Janet Abaroa, Durham police homicide investigators are turning to a famed psychic for help.

Lead homicide investigator Jack Cates confirmed Wednesday that investigator S.W. Vaughan has begun using a psychic to assist in developing leads in the 17-month-old probe into the stabbing death of the 25-year-old wife and mother.

Raven Abaroa reported discovering his wife's body in the couple's Ferrand Drive home on April 26, 2005. The murder weapon was never recovered, and while police would not say if there were signs of forced entry into the home, they said they believed the murder "was not a random act."

Cates would not confirm the identity of the psychic, but a source with knowledge of the case told The Herald-Sun that high-profile psychic Laurie McQuary of Lake Oswego, Ore.-based Management by Intuition, had stepped in to help develop leads.

The Herald-Sun was unable to reach McQuary for comment Wednesday.

McQuary, who has appeared on the Court TV show "Psychic Detectives" and been featured on CNN's "Larry King Live," has worked with law enforcement since 1985, according to her Web site. She has aided in investigations ranging from missing persons to homicides. She is married to a former Oregon homicide detective whom she met while working on a case.

That story is the subject of a book and a documentary that has aired on the Lifetime cable channel.

Janet Abaroa's sister, Dena Kendall, said the family has long been encouraging homicide investigators to use a psychic in hopes that investigators might uncover evidence that will lead to an arrest.

"We'll do anything we can to help solve the case," Kendall said. "We'll do whatever it takes."

Chief Steve Chalmers said he wasn't aware Vaughan had begun using the help of a psychic in the Abaroa murder investigation but said that it didn't surprise him.

He has encouraged all of his investigators to "get creative and think outside the box," he said.

"We're going to use every tool available to us to substantiate evidence," he added. "There are people who believe in it and people who don't. But we have a responsibility to gather any evidence we can. It's our responsibility to seek out those individuals who can help us regardless of any cynicism."

The Herald-Sun could not confirm if McQuary was being paid by anyone for her services. The city's Finance Department reported that no checks had been issued to anyone by her name.

Although instances are few and far between, the Abaroa case is not the first time Durham law enforcement has been assisted by a psychic, according to Capt. Paul Martin of the Sheriff's Office.

Martin, a former captain with the Durham Police Department, recalled Sheriff's Office investigators using the assistance of psychic Dorothy Allison in the search for the body of 13-year-old Darlene Tilley in the fall of 1980.

"It's something that has been done around the country for a while now ... the success rate I don't know," Martin said.

"I would do anything to clear a difficult case," he added.

Durham resident Gerald Endress said he wasn't surprised to learn that police had enlisted McQuary's assistance, especially since the idea of involving psychics in investigations has been so popularized on television. If all other leads have been exhausted, Endress said, using a psychic might be a good idea.

Resident Kathy Fitts agreed, but said she hoped tax dollars aren't being used to foot the bill.

"You expect your tax dollars to be going to city improvements ... not toward things you would hope the police department would be able to do on their own," she said.

The Herald-Sun September 27, 2006 4:14 pm If anyone needs a reminder that violent gangs continue to plague Durham, look no further than Wednesday's Herald-Sun. In that edition, two articles by John Stevenson describe the impact of gangs on two cases now in court.

In one, Breon Jerrard Beatty, 17, is charged with killing Anontio Demetrius Dent, also 17, in a parking lot off North Roxboro Road last year. The details of who shot whom aren't in dispute. Instead, the case hinges around whether Beatty, as his defense lawyer argues, was acting in self-defense when he shot Dent four times. Evidence indicates the shooting may have been a dispute over the turf of the Bloods, a violent street gang.

In this case, the culture of gangs and guns stretches the definition of self-defense to the breaking point. Think of a Wild West culture in which two heavily armed men face off on either side of a public street. They have both threatened each other's lives in the past, and they both have murder on their minds. When the bullets start flying, can either one, or both, claim self-defense?

It's a far different situation than one in which an innocent person, minding his or her own business, is suddenly forced into desperate self-defense.

The second trial is that of Calvin Nicholson, accused of fatally shooting Todd Antonio Douglas on Bacon Street. Nicholson reportedly told police that he shot Douglas as a gang initiation that he later regretted.

In the trial, five prosecution witnesses have told Judge Robert Hobgood they would refuse to testify against Nicholson. Prosecutor Tracey Cline said some of them had been threatened. The situation was difficult for the veteran prosecutor and the judge.

Cline admitted to being "at a loss" about how to proceed. Judge Hobgood said an investigation should be held into who is intimidating witnesses. We agree. Those who terrorize witnesses mock the notions of justice and fair trial. They need to be brought to justice themselves.

Durham city and county recently joined to spend $60,000 to have a study on Durham gangs conducted. While we don't hold out hope for any major revelations, we hope the study will provide some useful data about the extent of gangs in Durham, and will help us qualify for further funding.

But we don't need a study to tell us whether gangs in Durham are a problem. That, we know already.

Perhaps my desire to have a 2,997 flag display to memorialize everyone whose life was taken that day, and the purchasing of flag pins which we will encourage people to wear so that we as a campus can come together to show our support for our nation which suffered so much pain and loss in that attack 5 years ago, clashed too strongly with their worldviews.

Consider part of the response I received from the new head of the political science department: I personally do not think that your approach is appropriate because it depersonalizes the tragedy by converting it into an American issue.

It depends on the state. If a victim won't testify because s/he agreed not to in exchange for a money settlement, there's not a whole lot the DA can do about it in some states. That's what happened in CA in the first Michael Jackson case. Then the law was changed.

319
posted on 09/28/2006 2:23:46 PM PDT
by Jezebelle
(Our tax dollars are paying the ACLU to sue the Christ out of us.)

Meanwhile, a CBS 60 Minutes expose on the Duke alleged rape case originally planned to air on Sept. 24, has now been tentatively rescheduled for Oct. 15, sources say, due to late breaking developments.

In 1967 a number of black students at Duke University formed the Afro-American Society and began negotiating with the school administration to improve a campus racial climate they considered dismal. After more than a year, feeling their negotiations were leading nowhere, about 50 members of the Afro-American Society and a few former students occupied the Allen Administration Building just after its offices opened on February 13, 1969.

They issued a statement including a list of 11 demands, among them

establishment of an Afro-American studies department,

establishment of a black dormitory,

an increase in black undergraduate enrollment to 29 percent (at the time, there were 85 blacks among about 6,000 undergraduates at Duke), and

reinstatement for black students previously forced to leave Duke "because of the stifling social and educational environment."

They also threatened to burn university records if the demands were not met or if police were sent to force them out.

The statement concluded with the words:

"We seized the building because we have been negotiating with Duke administration and faculty concerning different issues that affect black students for 2 1/2 years and we have no meaningful results. We have exhausted the so-called 'proper' channels."

The occupation created an enormous uproar on campus, as more than 1,000 onlookers and supporters gathered outside Allen Building. Caught completely by surprise, administrators met through the afternoon; so did student and faculty groups. Just after 5 p.m., Durham mayor Wense Grabarek notified the Duke administration that 240 National Guardsmen had been mobilized in case they were needed. Meantime, a contingent of Durham police prepared to move into the building, even as the students, after talking with administrators and local activists, were preparing to move out.

Police confronted about 200 students, most of them white, blocking the building's entrances. When objects began to fly, the police fired off tear gas without warning. More students poured out of their dormitories, and for an hour police and students charged at and retreated from each other. Twenty students were later treated for injuries in the melee, and police made five arrests. In protest the black students created Malcolm X University. Many of the white students boycotted classes for three days.

After subsequent talks, the university agreed to act on some of the students' demands, including establishing a program in Afro-American studies. In March, the university brought 13 "ringleaders" of the occupation to an on-campus hearing under Duke's "Pickets and Protest" policy. The other 48 involved in the occupation appeared at the hearing in support of their leaders, and all 61 pleaded "nolo contendere." They were exonerated and allowed to remain in school.

That is an interesting column and containing some new information to me, so interesting quotes and a few errors:

1. Maybe the biggest news is that he reports deep in the column that as we suspected the new discovery adds nothing of consequence to the case.

2. Did either of you ever think in this case you would read Cash Michael quotes Michael Gayner and Robert "KC" Johnons other than to criticize them. He just gives their point of view and moves on.

3. He fails to fully explain to his readers that while Joann Little claimed attempted rape as her defense to homicide, ie self defense, she was the defendent. Mangum is NOT a defendent. She has no right to a fair trial or a jury of her peers. Evans, Finnerty and Seligmann are defendants and do have a right to a fair trial and a jury of their peers.

4. This is the first I have read that the 60 minutes segment is off until 15 October? I wonder if he means due to late breaking developments in this case or other stories 60 minutes wants to cover?

5. How dumb is Nancy Grace? Did she get her law degree over the internet? The defense has only filed motions in court. They have done nothing to harm their case for a change in venue. And had they smeared Mangum, it would not matter. The defendants NOT THE DEFENSE ATTORNEYS have an absolute right to a fair trial. It does not matter who tainted the jury pool. The Judge may not sanction the defense in any way that abridges the defendants rights to a fair trial.

6. The defense most certainly will request a change of venue. If it is not granted, then that is a reversable error in the event of a nullification conviction. It would be attorney malpractice not to seek a change in venue.

7. I expect this case if it gets to trial to be tried in Greensboro. I believe that is part of Judge Smith's judicial district. I doubt he wants to move the case to one of the small counties in his district like Caswell, but he could.

8. Cash Michael does not seem to understand that the motion to quash Mangum's ID of the three has long ago been filed and is not something that "might" be filed.

DURHAM -- Durham Judge David Q. LaBarre and Durham Assistant District Attorney Tracey Cline said Thursday that political activists approached them about accepting a possible gubernatorial appointment as Durham's chief prosecutor.

Both said they weren't interested.

The person Cline said approached her with the offer, lawyer Jerry Clayton, denies he did so. LaBarre would not identify the people he said approached him.

The top prosecutor's job would be open to appointment if County Commissioner Lewis Cheek, the only candidate on the ballot besides District Attorney Mike Nifong, won the Nov. 7 election.

Cheek got enough petition signatures to put his name on the ballot. But after weighing the situation for weeks, he finally declared he would not serve if he won -- which would force Gov. Mike Easley to select someone in his place. Despite Cheek's decision not to serve, his name remains on the ballot as an unaffiliated candidate.

A third district attorney candidate, local Republican Party Chairman Steve Monks, is running on an unaffiliated, write-in basis.

Dissatisfaction with Nifong's handling of the controversial Duke University lacrosse rape case has fueled much of the campaign rhetoric so far, with some voters mounting an "anybody-but-Nifong" initiative.

Cline said Thursday that Clayton asked her about accepting a gubernatorial appointment as district attorney if Cheek won. According to Cline, Clayton suggested that retired Sheriff Roland Leary and state employee and former City Councilman Ed Pope were behind his overture.

Cline said she spurned the idea.

"I am not involved in the political game here," she said. "I am not involved in any political maneuvering whatsoever. The voters should determine who is the next DA of Durham County. I have always supported Mike Nifong as DA and I continue to do so."

Clayton denied he discussed the situation with Cline.

"All I can do is deny it because I don't know anything about it," he said Thursday. "I'm not in any camp, working for anybody or doing anything in regards to the election."

But in the past, Clayton has been deeply involved in district attorney politics. He provided heavy support for two unsuccessful candidates: Pat Evans in the 1990s and Freda Black in a Democratic primary four months ago. Black now works for Clayton.

Like Clayton, Leary and Pope denied any maneuvering in the November election.

"I know nothing of what you speak," Leary said Thursday. "Of course, rumors are abounding. But Roland Leary has done nothing in that direction. That's just not right. I deny that."

Even if he wanted to manipulate a possible gubernatorial appointment, he didn't have the influence to do so, Leary insisted.

"I find the governor to be an independent person who makes his own decisions," he said. "I don't know who influences him. I certainly can't influence him. ? I know the governor, but I've never spoken to him about appointments to any office at all."

Pope said it "would be silly" to make empty promises about an appointment that would be entirely in the governor's hands.

Cheek also said he was not involved in discussions about the situation.

"I have no idea who is having that conversation with anybody," he said. "I'm not involved in anything like that at all. I don't know anybody who is. But I can't say it surprises me. I expect there are a whole lot of things going on behind the scenes. That's the nature of politics."

LaBarre, a retired Superior Court judge who now presides two days a week on the District Court bench, declined Thursday to say who approached him.

He said only that "several different individuals from several different political camps inquired about my interest in the DA's Office."

LaBarre said he turned them away.

"In my judgment, a judge should not be involved in the DA election," he added. "I do not intend to be even indirectly involved. The voters have several choices in the DA's race. I would not want my name injected into it as any sort of inducement to vote or not vote for any particular candidate."

Nifong said Thursday it was his understanding that inducements had, in fact, been made.

"I was told Roland [Leary] and Ed [Pope] were making claims or promises or whatever to members of the African-American community that if they would vote for Lewis Cheek, then Tracey Cline would be the next DA," said Nifong.

"I also heard they made representations to the white community that if they voted for Lewis Cheek, then Dave LaBarre would be the next DA," Nifong added.

Cline is black; Cheek is white.

"People have accused me of dividing the community with the lacrosse case," the district attorney said. "It seems to me the lacrosse case has merely revealed divisions that already existed. This ongoing campaign by Roland Leary and Ed Pope is the most divisive thing I've ever seen."

Meanwhile, Nifong confirmed Thursday that Pope had asked him to intercede on behalf of a Durham man named Christopher Andrew Best who is imprisoned for armed robbery.

"Ed came to me and asked if I would do something to reduce his sentence," Nifong said. "I told him I had no authority to do that and no one else in the court system did either."

Pope acknowledged he asked Nifong about Best, saying he did so because he was acquainted with the convicted man's family.

"It wasn't an influence thing or anything like that," he said. "I was just asking him for a little help. I didn't know what he could or could not do as district attorney. It had nothing to do with the election."

DURHAM -- A blaze that engulfed a vacant house frequented by drug users and prostitutes capped a week of violence on an East Durham street corner where children wait for the school bus every weekday morning.

Durham Fire Department officials said flames raged for only five minutes before firefighters were able to get a handle on the Thursday blaze at 2116 Ashe St., which investigators called "suspicious."

Although the house was not occupied at the time of the fire, Battalion Chief G.W. Reams said it is a known haunt of drug users.

"When you have an empty house in a drug-infested neighborhood area like that, people will use it to conduct their business," he said.

Police spokeswoman Kammie Michael said officers have been out to the house 14 times since the beginning of the year. Police made four prostitution arrests at the address last year, she said, adding that investigators have staged several prostitution stings in the area more recently.

Darrell Phillips, 14, reported that he had been threatened with a handgun Wednesday at the Neal Middle School bus stop located outside the house, just six days after a 16-year-old girl was brutally assaulted with a razor less than five hundred feet away.

Parents and the Rev. Melvin Whitley plan to be outside the charred house early today, in a show of support for the children Whitley said must contend with prostitutes and drug dealers every morning on their way to school.

Darrell, who moved to Durham with his mother and two sisters four months ago, said he was waiting for the bus when, he alleges, another teenager began taunting him.

The other teen walked away from the bus stop in the direction of the nearby M&M Mini Mart, and returned holding a pistol, Darrell alleged.

"He came back and said, 'What you got to say now?' I didn't say anything, I was trying not to look at the gun. Then he pulled a red bandanna up around his neck [and acted like] he wanted to fight."

The conflict between the other teen and Darrell, according to Darrell's mom, A.J. St. John, began Monday when the boys had a physical altercation. A relative of the other teen spat in Darrell's face, St. John said. Later, her son responded by punching the relative in the face, St. John said.

Sheriff's deputies interviewed both teens Monday, according to Sheriff's Capt. Paul Martin. Martin said the deputies could not tell who had caused the conflict and told St. John to speak with a magistrate to see if she had cause to swear out a warrant for the other teen's arrest.

St. John said she did swear out that warrant but even after the alleged handgun incident, she said, the other teen was a spectator when firefighters responded to the Ashe Street fire.

Meanwhile, District One investigators are looking into the assault on the 16-year-old, Martin said. While he could not say too much about the case, he reported the girl required more than 100 stitches.

Larry Wells, father of an 11-year-old boy who waits at Darrell Phillips' bus stop each school day, said he worries every day for his son's safety in East Durham. Because the father leaves for work at 5 a.m., he said he has instructed his son not to leave the family's house until the bus arrives at the corner.

Wells added he was angry that Neal Middle School had notified parents of the dangers at the bus stop.

Durham Public Schools spokesman Michael Yarbrough said he could not comment and referred The Herald-Sun to Durham police.

Whitley said he is enraged that a bus stop is located on the same corner as a house frequented by drug users and prostitutes. Whitley said he has long asked the city to do something about the prostitutes and crack users who did business in the dark of 2116 Ashe St.

"Kids ought to be able to get on and off the bus without being threatened, without passing prostitutes," Whitley said.

He vowed to be at the corner this morning to help take back the corner from the individuals he said are ruining East Durham.

DURHAM -- Durham County Democrats are trying to pull together the funding for a three-week, get-out-the vote effort that could boost the electoral fortunes of the party's statewide judicial candidates and District Attorney Mike Nifong, their leader says.

County Chairman Floyd McKissick Jr. said the Durham party intends to encourage its faithful to vote a straight ticket, mainly to ensure that the Democrats running for seats on the N.C. Supreme Court and the N.C. Court of Appeals get the maximum possible lift from one of the party's chief strongholds in the state.

McKissick said that Nifong will have the county party's "wholehearted support" despite the continuing controversy over the Duke lacrosse case, and that he doesn't expect many party faithful to defect to petition candidate Lewis Cheek or Republican write-in Steve Monks.

"What I've heard is that Mr. Nifong is getting overwhelming support" within the county party, McKissick said. "That's not to say that there won't be significant efforts made on behalf of those not enchanted with his candidacy. But the overwhelming majority of Democratic activists that I've dealt with and spoken to are strongly behind Mr. Nifong."

The strength of the party's get-out-the-vote effort, however, likely would depend on whether McKissick can land the money necessary to pay for what he said without elaborating is "a pretty extensive plan" to spread the word.

McKissick declined to say where he expects the money to come from, though it's common knowledge in political circles that county parties have been receiving campaign subsidies in recent years from the Democrats' statewide organization.

State party Chairman Jerry Meek, who's pushed that effort, didn't return calls Thursday seeking comment on whether his organization will be helping McKissick's during this fall's election cycle. Other sources, however, said McKissick's funding request might have reached the state party after it already had allocated most of its available campaign money.

Meanwhile, the other candidates in the DA's race indicated that they're also trying to step things up.

Cheek confirmed Thursday that he intends to show up for a candidate interview with the Friends of Durham, one of the three political action committees that dominate the endorsement process in the county. The others are the People's Alliance and the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People.

The Friends are generally considered the most conservative of the three PACs. Among candidates, the rule of thumb is that a winning campaign needs support from at least two of the organizations.

Cheek has said he won't take the DA's office if elected, but would encourage people to vote for him anyway to give Gov. Mike Easley a chance to appoint a replacement for Nifong. His position on that hasn't changed, but people in the other two camps regarded the county commissioner's decision to talk to the Friends as a sign that he'll campaign more actively than they thought he might.

Cheek said he accepted the Friends' invitation Monday after speaking to one of the group's leaders, David Smith. He also received a candidate questionnaire over the weekend from an area newspaper, and is still trying to decide whether to answer it.

The questionnaire's arrival showed that "I have to think about how I'm going to handle these" routine campaign-related requests, Cheek said, adding that he accepted the Friends' invitation because he's always willing to meet with constituents.

"I'm approaching it the same way I do any other thing I'm doing," he said. "If folks would like to have me come talk to them and answer questions, I'm willing to do that."

Cheek hasn't received invitations yet from the Durham Committee or the People's Alliance. "I can't say I expect to," he said, noting the unusual nature of his part in the race.

Like McKissick, Monks and his campaign manager, Charlotte Woods, are trying to raise money for a last-minute campaign effort. Woods said she wants to secure television time for her candidate, and believes if the funding comes through to allow that, he'll be a threat to Nifong.

She hinted Thursday that the campaign had scored at least some success on the money front, and said that the possibility that Monks would step aside if Cheek changed his mind about taking office if elected is now off the table.

"We feel there's been some credibility lost there, if he were to step up and say I've changed my mind again," Woods said.

Monks -- McKissick's counterpart in the Durham County Republicans -- said his strategy depends on getting good support from GOP voters, and finding a way to appeal to unaffiliated voters and dissident Democrats.

"The Democratic Party is somewhat divided on this," he said, disputing McKissick.

POSTED: 2:46 am EDT September 29, 2006 UPDATED: 3:03 am EDT September 29, 2006 RALEIGH, N.C. -- A prominent criminal defense attorney most recently involved in the Duke University lacrosse case is one of the members of the newly-appointed North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission.

In August, North Carolina became the first state to empower an independent panel to investigate convicted felons' claims of innocence. The panel will initiate reviews that could lead to overturned convictions.

State Supreme Court Chief Justice Sarah Parker and Court of Appeals Chief Judge John Martin announced the appointments Thursday.

Parker's appointments include defense attorney Wade Smith of Raleigh. Smith represents Collin Finnerty, one of three Duke lacrosse players charged with raping an exotic dancer at an off-campus party in March.

328
posted on 09/29/2006 4:40:20 AM PDT
by abb
(The Dinosaur Media: A One-Way Medium in a Two-Way World)

"People have accused me of dividing the community with the lacrosse case," the district attorney said. "It seems to me the lacrosse case has merely revealed divisions that already existed. This ongoing campaign by Roland Leary and Ed Pope is the most divisive thing I've ever seen."

This is disturbing. Trying the case before the media, labeling players hooligans," claiming their daddies could buy them expensive lawyers and that they knew the right people," and race-pandering at an April NCCU forum "merely revealed divisions that already existed?"

"The reason that I took this case is because this case says something about Durham that I'm not going to let be said," Nifong said. "I'm not going to let Durham's view in the minds of the world to be a bunch of lacrosse players from Duke raping a black girl in Durham."

DURHAM -- Duke University announced Thursday that Robert King Steel, chairman of the Board of Trustees, has given the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership $500,000.

"I've been impressed with what's happened with the partnership over the years," Steel said.

As a Durham native and Duke graduate, he said, the town and the university are two important affiliations for him. He's happy "to be able to bridge the two with one gift," he said.

The gift will be used for current efforts, as well as to help establish an endowment, Steel said.

The partnership efforts have been at the suggestion of the neighborhoods involved, said Richard Brodhead, president of Duke University. They include access to health care, education and neighborhood revitalization.

"These three things require continuing effort," Brodhead said. "It's wonderful Bob Steel gave us the means to do that."

A member of one of the partnership's 12 neighborhoods surrounding East and West campuses was happy to hear the news.

"I'm delighted to see that Duke's commitment to the partnership with neighborhoods extends to the highest levels of the university," said John Schelp, president of the Old West Durham Neighborhood Association.

Steel said a tour of Lyon Park and Walltown last year helped him to see the partnership's efforts, "and the excitement for what could be done with a little bit of help."

When asked whether he had priorities for the gift, he said he has a great deal of confidence in the partnership staff.

"I should just get out of the way and let them do what they are doing," Steel said.

The partnership dates back to 1996, and Steel's gift brings the amount the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership has raised this year to nearly $1.5 million.*

This summer, the Duke Endowment awarded the partnership $527,500, and a campaign before that raised $412,000.

Steel is a former vice chairman of Goldman Sachs & Company. He teaches at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. He graduated from Duke in 1973.

DURHAM -- A new advisory board could be in N.C. Central University's future.

NCCU's trustees discussed the possibility Wednesday of forming a board of visitors, and Chancellor James Ammons said he hopes the administration can make a recommendation to the trustees by the end of the academic year.

The board of visitors concept grew from discussions about how NCCU operates, Ammons said. It's possible such a board could act as advisers, supporting a number of university functions.

"We're looking at various models," Ammons said.

NCCU officials have been exploring the idea since the summer.

The issue arose Wednesday after trustee Eric Michaux said a memo he received from UNC suggested that asking some people to be trustees emeritus could pose a perceived conflict of interest.

Leslie Winner, vice president and general counsel for UNC, said NCCU representatives asked her last week whether it would be proper to ask members of the UNC Board of Governors or General Assembly to be trustees emeritus.

Winner said it was not implied that anyone had done anything wrong. But she said she believed that asking a Board of Governors member to become a trustee emeritus or member of an individual campus' advisory board went against the spirit of the policies.

Also, the state statutes that created the university system mention a long list of people who should not be trustees, including members of the General Assembly, she said.

Winner's response wasn't what Michaux was looking for.

"I'm just extremely disappointed. It certainly hampers schools like Central from gaining support from people who understand the school and what it needs," Michaux said after the meeting.

A trustee emeritus could help the university in many ways, including fundraising, he said. The university will soon embark on a centennial campaign.

"We're going to need this help. We're going to need this support out there," Michaux said at the meeting.

Emeritus status, he added, already has been bestowed on some.

Taken to an extreme, Michaux said, he's concerned that someone would have to choose trustee emeritus status over serving in the Legislature or on the Board of Governors, and he's worried about the effect that could have on NCCU.

Trustee Travis Porter asked whether officials had considered forming a board of visitors -- a body that wouldn't necessarily have any power, but would act in an advisory capacity.

"In some institutions they're very active," Porter said.

Also Wednesday, NCCU celebrated its 96th anniversary with a program that included a speech from Suzan Johnson Cook, author of "Too Blessed to be Stressed: Words of Wisdom for Women on the Move."

Cook, also pastor of Bronx Community Church, has a new book, "Live Like You're Blessed: Simple Steps for Making Balance, Love, Energy, Spirit, Success Encouragement and Devotion Part of Your Life." She explained how each of those fits into life.

She offered the audience several pieces of advice for leading a more blessed life.

"Be careful who you let in your life, and be careful what you put in your body," Cook said.*

Cook told students to have self-respect and to love themselves. When you honor yourself, she said, invitations will come from people who want to be in your presence.

DURHAM -- A two-year process has led to the development of a new Durham logo, part of an "overarching brand" for the city.

The new logo reads "Durham: Where great things happen" and features a multicolored star within which are scattered five colored circles and five colored stars. The logo is part of a larger "branding" campaign funded by the Durham Convention & Visitors Bureau's Tourism Development Authority and guided through its final stages by the Durham Brand Advisory Group.

"[The branding] is critical not only to defining the brand with clarity, but in differentiating Durham from other communities in a way that connects it emotionally to the consumer," said advisory group member Carver Weaver of Durham's Square One Marketing.

"I love the way the star demonstrates not only excellence, but also represents people who are different but working together for a better world," said advisory group member Rosalind Fuse-Hall of N.C. Central University.

DURHAM -- Duke University celebrated Founders Day Thursday by recognizing outstanding service to the institution.

Seymour Mauskopf, a history professor, received the Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Teaching Award, while Erwin Chemerinsky, a professor of law and political science, received the University Scholar/Teacher of the Year Award.

The university's Distinguished Alumni Award was given to a couple, Russell and Sally Dalton Robinson.

Duke President Richard Brodhead gave Duke's highest honor to two people.

William "Jimmy" Wallace Jr., a longtime photographer for the university, and Ruby Leila Wilson, a former dean of the school of nursing, received the University Medal for Distinguished Meritorious Service.

After the convocation, Wallace said his career at Duke had provided him numerous opportunities.

"It was a short 47 years, that's for sure," Wallace said.

Wilson said she had been associated with the university for five decades, starting as a faculty member.

"I'm so ecstatic, but also humble," Wilson said after the convocation, later adding, "I have to admit I'm pleased to have my service to the university, especially to the School of Nursing and Medical Center, recognized."

Paula Phillips Burger gave the convocation's keynote address. Burger, a Duke graduate, is on the board of trustees, worked in the administration and has a daughter who attends the school. She spoke of receiving her acceptance letter, and remembered the tears of pride and sadness in her father's eyes when her parents brought her to school.

Duke can help students improve their upward mobility and upward nobility, she said.

The idea of upward mobility doesn't refer to money, she said, but the thought that a student should aspire to higher goals.

Upward nobility, she said is exhibited through many efforts, including a global health initiative, the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership and other good works in which faculty and students are involved.

"Erwin Chemerinsky, a professor of law and political science, received the University Scholar/Teacher of the Year Award."

While keeping notably silent on the lacrosse affair.

He has a fine, high podium from which to preach, and he's keeping silent.

James Coleman, the only member of the Duke Law faculty to speak out, is the one who ought to get a special honor (and he only did what should be considered the NORM for decent and honorable men; but this kind of conduct is so rare it must now be considered special). And yet he will never qualify for any of these tinsel awards, though he has a better one in the hearts of people who still cherish truthful conduct.

Despite all the surrounding commentary and its myriad side issues, The Duke Lacrosse Case, when reduced to its elemental basics, can be summed up as follows: It is either a CRIME or a HOAX; it is either TRUE or FALSE.

In reading back over Kim's written statement in more detail for her time line of the events of 3/13 and 3/14, I wondered if maybe (don tinfoil hat) a bit of a ruse is being perpetrated by the DPD to fit the evidence to their theory.

Remember early on in the first or second hearing when Osborn, I think stated that the boys went outside the next morning and collected all of the stuff the AV dropped and brought it back inside. They subsequently led the cops with the search warrants to the items, which were collected.

Also we noted early on that it seemed queer that Kim had amended her statement to indicate the path she took when she went back into the house to locate Precious' stuff. This seemed to indicate the cops were thinking that the stuff wasn't back there as the boys had stated, cause Kim didn't see it when she went back inside.

Kim's amendment 1:45 after the original statement---

The point in time where I went to get Precious things from the house, I walked to the back of the house thru the side of the house outside. I enter the house from the outside from a back door. I looked in the bathroom to retrieve her things but could not find them. I exited the house the same way I came in, along the side of the house to my car without finding any of her items

In the same motion is a typed copy of Hinman's notes in which he almost verbatim restates Kim's hand written statement except for this interesting piece

From Hinman's notes...

03/22/06 - 1240HRS KIM PITTMAN CAME TO TALK ABOUT THE INCIDENT.

snip...

...BUT KIM DID NOT SEE HER THINGS. I MADE AN ATTEMPT TO GET HER THINGS. SHE STATED SHE GOT HER THINGS AND LOCKED THE DOOR WITH PRECIOUS INSIDE. SHE WENT TO THE BACK OF THE HOUSE TO TRY TO RETRIEVE HER BAG. SHE LOOKED AROUND WITH DAN BUT WAS UNABLE TO FIND ANYTHING

This discrepancy seems a bit odd to me.. Maybe just a wording issue. When I read Hinman's statement it sounds like he's saying that she said they looked around the back of the house. And why would she amend her statement to include the path she took to get back into the house?

Another minor, by maybe telling discrepancy between Kim's written statement and Hinman's transcription.

Kim's statement

There was a knock on the door and we were handed too drinks of equal amounts. We did sip the drinks but Precious cup fell into the sink.

Hinman's transcription

THERE WAS A KNOCK ON THE DOOR AND WE WERE HANDED TWO DRINKS OF EQUAL AMOUNTS. SHE STATED SHE SIPPED THE DRINKS (RUM AND COKE SHE THINKS) BUT PRECIOUS CUP FELL INTO THE SINK SPILLING THE CONTENTS, SHE THINKS THE VICTIM HAD A COUPLE DRINKS FROM HERS BUT SHE WAS NOT SURE.

Both of these deviations from Kim's written statement may be irrelevant, but they seem to be more suggestive of a theory the cops were postulating. They could also mean that Kim said one thing and wrote another. But I really can't imagine the cops not having her clear up those items, especially after having her do the first revision.

The chairman of Duke University's Academic Council, Paul Haagen, cited Charles Dickens' classic, "A Tale of Two Cities," at a Board of Trustees meeting Friday, when referencing Duke's national academic eminence and the trying times resulting from the Duke lacrosse rape case.

While saying that the university remains "the envy of American higher education," Haagen also addressed the lacrosse scenario.

"There is no question that, for some in our community, this experience has taken its toll. The ties that bind have become a little frayed in places, and in others a little too binding," Haagen said.

Three 2005-06 players -- David Evans, Collin Finnerty and Reade Seligmann -- deny committing rape, kidnapping and sexual offense against a dancer in connection with charges surrounding events at an off-campus lacrosse team party March 13 in Durham.

Haagen told trustees there will be demands for greater accountability.

They may come from government, the press and public and "predictably will challenge some of our established ways of doing things, both those that are merely comfortable and traditional, and those that go to core values," he said, citing freedom in scholarship and teaching.

Some of them, Haagen warned, will be poorly conceived and others won't be real demands for accountability, "but just the latest round of 'gotcha journalism' or political opportunism."

Duke student government president Elliott Wolf told the trustees that, as undergraduates, the most painful part has been discussing their wonderful experiences at the university with others, yet witnessing the talk inevitably shifting to the lacrosse story.

"We have decided the best course of action is not to directly respond to allegations associated with the lacrosse team and further associate the word 'Duke' with the word 'lacrosse,'" he said.

Earlier Friday, five panelists from a Campus Cultural Initiative committee formed in the aftermath of the allegations discussed whether Duke should continue "steady as she goes" or make changes.

The Rev. Canon Sam Wells, Dean of Duke Chapel and one of the panelists, said he believes the university is in the third of three chapters.

The first chapter, Wells said, ran from the 1920s to the late 1950s, with the world -- as seen by Duke -- run by a particular class, race and religious tradition and summed up in one word: "Privilege."

The second chapter, Wells said, was the 1960s, with the bastion being broken down by those who had been "wrongly" excluded in the previous chapter.

"We're in chapter three," he said. "And what I felt was probably going on in the spring was a bit of nostalgia from some groups from chapter one, when you knew what rules the were and everything was well with the world."

Combined with that, Wells said, was "a bit of nostalgia" from chapter two, when protest was the form of exchange and there was a sense of accomplishment by minorities.

"The difficulty, I think, is if we're in chapter three, where do we go from here?" he said.

The more specific questions, Wells said, are whether to replay or get into a "nostalgia fest" about the first two chapters or try and find a new language, new goals and a new identity.

"To me, this is a wonderful opportunity, not just for this campus, but for all who look to Duke as either an example or as a fellow partner in a conversation," he said.

Duke President Richard Brodhead announced the Campus Cultural Initiative in April. He anticipates seeing a preliminary report by December, with a final document expected by the spring.

DURHAM -- The Rev. Duane L. Hoskins announced Friday that he plans to run for president of the NAACP Durham branch.

"I had been planning to do this for several years," Hoskins said Friday. "Now more than ever we need some changes."

Earlier this month the Rev. Charles D. Smith, who has served as the branch's president for two years, said he would not seek another term after the current one ends in December.

One of Hoskins' priorities is to have the NAACP serve as a link between residents and agencies. With housing, education and health particularly, local agencies and entities are available to help, but people don't often know about them, he said.

With education, he'd like to see more programs that are alternatives to school suspensions, more continuing education and more people have access to earning their GEDs.

Hoskins has lived in Durham since 1982 and is working on a master's degree in divinity at Apex School of Theology.

He is an associate minister at Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church, and was an associate minister at Christian Home United Church of Christ in Apex.

He is involved in a number of organizations, including the Religious and Human Affairs Committee at the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, and the Durham Capital Improvement Board.

After three Duke University lacrosse players were accused of raping a N.C. Central University student at an off-campus party earlier this year, Hoskins said he formed a coalition of students from the two universities and Durham Technical Community College.

"All the parties are cooperative and willing to build and rebuild relationships," Hoskins said, adding that he doesn't think people have noticed that willingness.

A Unity Fest planned for this fall is an example of that coalition's work, he said.

So far, two people have announced plans to run for president of the NAACP branch.

Fred Foster Jr., political chairman for the Durham branch, stated his intentions earlier this month.

I must respond to Kim Brummell's letter of Sept. 23. She said, "some lacrosse supporters have the nerve to say DA Mike Nifong is dividing the community."

I am not a lacrosse supporter, but I support fairness. If Brummell believes District Attorney Mike Nifong is not dividing Durham, then obviously, she doesn't get out much. She also referred to the players' "disrespectful behavior."

Why is it wrong for the young men to show disrespect, but it's all right for Nifong?

Most of the times I have seen him on TV, he is laughing. It's no joke or laughing matter to ruin young men's lives in the manner he has, apparently for his political gain. It would serve him well, to conduct himself with dignity, as his predecessor Jim Hardin did.

When Hardin was prosecuting Michael Peterson, he treated him and his attorneys with respect. He may have laughed behind the scenes, I have no way of knowing if he did or did not, but he didn't when the cameras were on him. The crimes these young men are charged with in no way meet the sadistic murder of Michael Peterson's wife. Yet, Peterson was treated respectfully.

The sad part about this is, unless either Lewis Cheek or Steve Monks change their Election Day plans, the votes of people like me will be divided between the two men, thus keeping Nifong as DA.

"Duke student government president Elliott Wolf told the trustees that, as undergraduates, the most painful part has been discussing their wonderful experiences at the university with others, yet witnessing the talk inevitably shifting to the lacrosse story."

"We have decided the best course of action is not to directly respond to allegations associated with the lacrosse team and further associate the word 'Duke' with the word 'lacrosse,'" he said."

Disgusting!

Duke used to like to be associated with the word 'lacrosse'. They had a championship team. They still had one, until they dismissed the coach and scattered the players.

Now they don't want to be associated with justice, the innocence of their students, or the defense of their students' rights against a legal lynching. And they use this as an excuse--that they are trying to disassociate the university's good name from the scandal in the public mind; so for the sake of that higher goal they won't respond to anything about the hoax.

Haagen's and Wells' hand-wringing are based on the premise that a crime actually occurred on March 13/March 14 at 610 Buchanan. The basis for their pontificating disappears entirely if, as I do, you believe the evils that actually transpired was an ambitious, sociopathic DA run amok and a FA contributing to a hoax, a gross miscarriage of justice and the vicious character assasinations on 3 young men.

An eqully valid interpretation of the events would lead to a very different Chapter 3 of Wells magnus opus, one that details how liberal guilt and political correctness led Brodhead, many Duke professors and Durham LE to reject any notion of the keystone of our jurisprudence - "innocent until proven guilty" - and to sacrifice the futures and lives of three young students.

The crying shame is that when these three students are legally acquitted, Brodhead, Nifong et al are unlikely to be held to account for their various abuses, cowardice, ethical lapses and, in case of the DA, actual criminal activities.

"The Rev. Duane L. Hoskins announced Friday that he plans to run for president of the NAACP Durham branch. "

Until the Durham NAACP cares to explain why it shared a podium with the NBBP and the NOI, where Shabazz was permitted to give the keynote address, and everyone was addressed as 'brother and sister' inside a Christian church (yet where evidently the mandatory criteria for inclusion in 'brotherhood' and 'sisterhood' was the color of one's skin, and not any unanimity of religious belief), I want nothing to do with that organization.

I hoped they liked Shabazz's speech. He calls for the total extermination of all whites, especially Jews, and heads up a certified hate group.

How would a white church that invited the head of the Klan to be their keynote speaker be treated?

When groups like the NAACP fail to speak up for and defend the rights of everyone, they appear hypocritical and only inflict damage on race relations. They appear to pick sides in any fight, with their only criteria being color.

The Durham NAACP has done more to build mistrust among whites and blacks than the Klan did in all the past 50 years.

Apparently, this is part of a traveling dog and pony show. Mrs. Recall and I were invited to attend an alum event in Washington on November 8. The sorry lot of characters noted in this news article are planning to speak and field questions. Mrs. Recall and I are thinking about going wearing Duke lacrosse t-shirts and hats.

The attitude of Brodhead and his lackeys that there "nothing to see here, move along" is sickening. They already had to dip deep into its waiting list this year and the real hit comes in the next cycle; how many students are taking Duke off their list of schools to apply to because of this debacle? Every student and parent with a lick of sense will hesitate before applying, let alone accepting an offer of admission. I better stop because I'm starting to get agitated again.

I'm going to think about the questions I will ask Brodhead on November 8, any any suggestions are appreciated.

Rachel Shack, a Trinity College junior and women's lacrosse player, penned a remarkable essay (Duke Chronicle) that offers more sound judgment on the role of athletics at Duke than the post-March writings of the combined membership of the arts and sciences faculty.

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